The Brent Faiyaz Experience

Photo by Darren Luk

If you haven't heard of Brent Faiyaz you definitely have been under a rock. Recently his manager has one of the realist interviews out right now about the music industry and why Brent is where he's at right now. As his manager breaks down Brent's position as an indie artist, it all begins to make sense. If you're still wondering who Brent Faiyaz is let The Rap Hippies give you a sneak peak. Not too long one of The Rap Hippies went to his concert and gave nothing but praise.

Keep reading to get that Brent Faiyaz Experience.

Maybe I’m one of the few, in this generation of trap music listeners, who actually keeps up with this indie and R&B genre of music. Because, this past weekend when I attended Sonder’s concert, I didn’t expect the venue to be so small. I thought everyone knew who Brent Faiyaz was and that if they didn’t then they were missing out. Yes, of course, I still believe this. To be honest, it didn’t really matter because the energy flowed through the place as if thousands of people were there. Vibes everywhere from the band, to the singing, to the audience.

Although he only has one project out by himself, I’ve been a Brent Faiyaz fan for a while. There is something very soft, sexy and familiar with his music and the way he sings, it’ll put you in a trance. Well anyway, I was introduced to his other project Sonder when a friend sent me a personal playlist. I checked out one song and ended up downloading the whole EP. Now, it wasn’t really clear to me if Sonder was a group or not, but overtime I caught on. But, at that moment I knew I would one day see them in person.

Walking into Aisle 5, the vibe was set. Throwback R&B songs, along with drinks and good people everywhere. The concert started at 9pm, but all my concert goers reading this know how that goes. So, he didn’t actually show up until around 10:12pm (yes, I looked). He had no openers, so I figured the concert wouldn't be long. As I said before, the venue was tiny. I’ve never been to Aisle 5, or any concert this small so I wasn’t hesitating to migrate towards the front. Luckily, the place wasn’t crowded and the atmosphere was filled with the R&B aesthetic carried out by the entire audience.

He finally walks out and the crowd goes wild, I almost forgot where I was. I had such a clear view of him, that I knew it would be a good concert. When he came out and started singing “Feel” I could feel my voice already cracking, I think I was about to cry with too much excitement. There were moments where Brent let the crowd take the lead on his songs, as most artists do, but this time felt different. They weren’t just singing the songs he played, they were literally feeling every lyric. I kept asking myself how he would make seven songs last throughout his set. But, I stopped worrying about it once my favorite song played, “Searching”.

Honestly, I loved how he implemented the visuals with the melodies to every song. Him and the band. There was a time where he just let the band play. I believe it was during “Sirens” and “Too Fast”. When I tell you I was lost in nostalgia just from hearing the band play, it’s no exaggeration. The guitarist played for at least five minutes and the crowd was all for it, just because it was good. I love being around people who also appreciate the music behind the singing. Brent even left the stage to let the band have their shine.

When they started playing “Baldwin Park”, it was sort of a short intermission to feel a blissful high. What really got to me was when he decided to add some old Drake hits and killed it. We could hear “Bria’s Interlude” instrumental near the end of the song “Lovely” as he was finishing it up. Then later on he began singing “Fire and Desire” letting the song ride for a while, with just the band playing. Before he started singing some Jodeci hits, he took off his shirt and the beat dropped into “Feenin”.

To wrap it up, the concert lasted until maybe 11:13pm. That’s when he and the band left the first time. But, of course, the crowd wanted more. He came back and started singing “Too Fast”, but I could tell that wasn't what the audience had in mind, which brings me to my only disappointment of that evening. He didn’t sing “Poison”. Now if any person really listens to Brent like that, then you would know that “Poison” is one of those crowd pleasers. I realize it’s not on Sonder’s album, but come on, it would’ve set everything off. So after that he and the band left again, the audience was still there, for at least another 30 minutes, until we came to the realization that he isn’t going to sing it. I started to realize it when I saw the band members on the ground with the audience buying drinks and hanging out.

The concert was definitely high on the scale, but I believe the night would’ve ended perfectly if he would’ve hit us with what we really wanted. But anyway, I could tell throughout his entire set, that he really enjoys being in front of crowds and trying things out. He did everything he knew to connect with the audience and to somehow get the audience to connect with each other, emotionally and spiritually. I can’t really tell you everything I felt being there, you really just had to be there. But, I think I have enough footage to put all of you on my level.